Day 382: Andre 3000 – New Blue Sun

Today was once again one of those days where I had to try about a million albums before I landed on something, nothing felt right. I thought I should go for an instrumental album I can have on while I’m reading and I had a lot of time to kill, so I thought I could finally tackle a behemoth that’s been on my list for ages. Clocking in at a hefty hour and a half, it was finally time to listen to Andre 3000’s flute album, New Blue Sun.

Album cover courtesy of Epic

Andre 3000 is on my personal list of people who need no introduction, but just in case: Andre 3000, or André Lauren Benjamin, is a rapper, singer, producer, actor and multi-instrumentalist from Atlanta, Georgia, who’s probably best known as the other half of the hip hop duo Outkast. After Outkast started their hiatus, Andre 3000 pursued various solo work, but he hadn’t actually released a full-length solo studio album until he released New Blue Sun in 2023.

Even though Andre 3000 had played flute on the soundtrack to the film Everything Everywhere All at Once, I don’t think anyone saw this coming, him included – the opening track is called “I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album but This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time”.  It’s an album of beautiful flute-infused spiritual jazz or ambient that reminds me a bit of Hiroshi Yoshimura, not because they sound similar but because they both have that element of understated elegance that feels like it’s clearing the air in the room that it’s played in.

Put simply, the vibes on this album are immaculate. It’s a beautiful, peaceful record to listen to that’s going straight into my wellness repertoire, I’m almost sure that lighting a candle and whacking this on could probably fix even the most rancid day. It’s one of those that’s best enjoyed lying down with your eyes closed, sinking into the dreamy and slightly psychedelic soundscape. It was an hour and a half well spent. 9/10.